1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to group communication systems, and more particularly to electronic group communications systems for remotely linking two or more geographically separated spaces for social interaction.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electronic communication systems technology provides an incredible number of ways for people to communicate with each other. Everyday examples of such communication systems include telephones, answering machines, and pagers. Communication systems that are adapted for the workplace include computer network file-sharing, electronic mail (xe2x80x9cemailxe2x80x9d), fax machines, electronic whiteboards, and telephone and video conferencing. Important classes of these systems include asynchronous document-management systems and synchronous conferencing systems.
Asynchronous document-management systems enable users to exchange email and access shared databases to create, read, and revise documents. Because these systems manage documents that persist over time, users of these systems can work independently from one another; for example, one can send an email message at any time of day, without having to take into consideration the recipients"" accessibility at the time of sending. Synchronous conferencing systems typically connect together sets of users at the same time in order to have a joint verbal discussion using shared audio and/or video channels. Often these systems provide a shared xe2x80x9cwhiteboardxe2x80x9d channel as well, on which users can draw using xe2x80x9cdigital inkxe2x80x9d and move a shared pointer to refer to portions of these drawings during the conversation.
FIG. 1 is a diagram of a conventional asynchronous document-management system 10 of the prior art. The system 10 includes a server 12 and a plurality of clients 16 coupled together by a network cable 18. The server 12 is typically a computer with substantial processing power and storage capacity. The server 12 stores and maintains a large number of documents 14 that are made available to the clients 16 over the network cable 18. Each individual client 16 is usually a terminal that can be operated by a single user such as a personal computer or a workstation.
The server 12 and the set of clients 16 are able to transfer and copy the documents 14 between them. The documents 14 may be any form of information or data such a word-processing documents, programs, and graphics. The network cable 18 is a communication line that is configured to transfer the documents 14 electronically between the server 12 and the clients 14 such as a phone line or an Ethernet cable.
The document-management system 10 has been very successful at providing a high-speed means for sharing information. In addition, software known as groupware increases flexibility of the shared information within the system 10. One of the most successful groupware applications is Lotus Notes, which allows a workgroup to share documents jointly and to add notes commenting upon these documents in a structured way. However, these systems are optimized for handling large quantities of typewritten textual information and thus can be cumbersome to maintain and use.
FIG. 2 is a diagram of a conventional synchronous conferencing system 20 of the prior art. Microsoft Net Meeting is one example of a conferencing system 20 that includes clients 22 that are connected by a network cable 24. For ease of illustration, only two clients 22a and 22b are shown, however, as is well known in the art, many more clients 22 can be connected to the cable 24 to allow more users to join the conference. Users of the conferencing system 20 are able to communicate directly with each other to view and modify a shared xe2x80x9cwhiteboardxe2x80x9d document 26 at the same time through the clients 22.
FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a synchronous conferencing system 30 of the prior art. The conferencing system includes a server 32 that is connected to a number of clients 34. For ease of illustration, only two clients 34a and 34b are shown, however, as is well known in the art, many more clients 34 can be connected to the server 32. The server 32 maintains an updated-shared document 36 that is available to the clients 34. When the users xe2x80x9chang upxe2x80x9d and disconnect from the conference the updated-shared document 36 is not automatically saved.
While synchronous conferencing systems enable users to jointly view and modify documents at the same time many lack a quality known as persistence which is inherent in all asynchronous systems. For example, when an email message is received, the content of the communication must be persistent because it is generally not read immediately. Because the message is saved on the receiving computer the recipient can then read, print, or respond to the message at her leisure.
In contrast, because synchronous communication focuses upon real-time coordinated interaction, the content of the shared whiteboard document in most synchronous conferencing systems is ephemeral. Generally, when all of the users disconnect from a synchronous system, the content of the shared document is lost. There are electronic communication systems that allow for the preservation of the shared document, however the prior art methods for doing so are not very flexible and generally require an explicit request from the user.
In summary, prior art asynchronous document-management systems allow users at their leisure to exchange messages at their leisure and jointly add to, read, and revise a persistent shared database, but require users to follow formal and cumbersome procedures designed to enable large text-based databases. Prior art synchronous conferencing systems allow sets of users to converse in real-time and provide easy, flexible access to a shared digital-ink-based whiteboard document. However, they require the conversing users to use the system all at the same time, and are not easily configured to save the content of the shared document. In view of the foregoing, it is desirable to have a method and apparatus of social interaction that provides for an easy-to-use means of communication combining aspects of both asynchronous document-management systems and synchronous conferencing systems.
The present invention fills these needs by providing an efficient and easy to use method and apparatus of semi-synchronous communication. It should be appreciated that the present invention can be implemented in numerous ways, including as a process, an apparatus, a system, a device or a method. This method and apparatus of social interaction allows users to communicate at their leisure (asynchronously or xe2x80x9csemi-synchronouslyxe2x80x9d) by providing simple, flexible access to a persistent, shared space. Several embodiments of the present invention are described below.
A first embodiment of the present invention takes the form of an electronic communication system that provides a shared persistent data space to a plurality of clients. This system comprises a server and at least two input/display units (IDUs) which clients use to access shared persistent data in the form of group boards. The group boards store discrete notes in a group database made accessible to all members of the group. The server may be centrally located separate from the IDUs or, alternatively, the server may be a virtual server distributed across the IDUs. In any event, the server maintains at least one group board database thereby creating a shared persistent space accessible by the IDUs.
In order to allow clients to select a desired group, each IDU includes an input detection space operable to receive user input indicative of a request to access a specific group. The input detection space can take on a wide variety of forms such as an array of electromechanical buttons, a touch or pressure sensitive device, a digital inking device, a token input device (tokens each have some identification in the form of circuitry or such), or a voice command device.
In order to allow clients to enter data into the board group database, each IDU includes a note data input device. Like the input detection space, a wide variety of note data input devices are contemplated. For example, a touch, stylus or pressure sensitive device would be suitable. A scanning device also works well, creating a unique persistent space wherein users can exchange discrete note messages of a variety of forms such as handwritten notes and photographs.
The present invention also teaches a variety of methods for operating the electronic communications systems described above. For example, certain methods enable multiple boards to be accessed by a single IDU. In the case of the token input detection space, the input detection space is capable of receiving and detecting multiple tokens in order to access more than one board group.
The present invention also teaches the creation and maintenance of electronic database through the use of a scanning input device. Using the scanning input device for data entry enables the database client to assemble numerous discrete notes of varying type within a single database. E. G., the notes could be scanned photographs, handwritten notes, word processor documents, etc. This enables the database client to assemble, view and manipulate data arising from a wide variety of sources.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.